HOW IT IS MADE :Light channeling panel is formed
from two 6 mm sheets of acrylic plastic. An array of angled laser cuts is made
in each sheet forming reflecting surfaces within the acrylic. The sheets
are laminated together into a single panel 12 mm thick containing channels that
redirect light. Sunlight incident on the input face is reflected through the channels to the output face.
Nearly all sunlight
is redirected into an upwards direction. Channel panel may also be cut in a
single 12 mm sheet avoiding the need for lamination.

HOW IT IS INSTALLED :Channel panel is usually installed internally in the upper part of a window
above head height of a standing occupant. The lower part of the window is
usually shaded by a blind or external shade to control radiant input through
that part of the window. A simple and useful installation is to hang channel panels behind venetian
blinds as shown in the left hand window below. See also
USING CHANNEL PANEL

The Venetian blinds are set to
reject sunlight through that part of the window not covered by channel panels.
As channel panels redirect sunlight upward the sunlight re-directed by the panels passes
through the blinds and over the ceiling providing good shading of the room and
deep natural lighting.

HOW IT PERFORMS :
The photographs below illustrate the performance obtained when a channel panel 200 mm
high and one metre wide is hung in different windows in a room. In each case the
channel panel is hung behind a conventional Venetian
blind.

ABC

The left hand photograph above
(A) has a panel hung in the side window. Sunlight is re-directed by the panel
towards the ceiling and over the rear wall deep inside the room. This redirected
sunlight is diffusely reflected from the ceiling and wall to naturally
illuminate the room. In photograph (A) the venetian blind has been tilted upward
to block sunlight entering below the panel from flowing directly into the room.
The combination of panel and blind provides good shading and good natural
lighting and a reasonable view to the outside. In the middle photograph (B) the blind
in front of the panel has been tilted downward to allow sunlight below the panel
to enter the room directly resulting in reflected glare from
surfaces in the room. In the right hand photograph (C) the panel has been hung
in the front window. This photograph, taken at a different time of day from (A)
and (B), clearly illustrates the spread of re-directed sunlight across the
ceiling of the room.

COMMERCIAL :*Commercial partners in
the US and Australia are sought to manufacture
and market this product
under license.

*U S Patent 7,070,314 and
Australian Patent 2003204904 were granted in 2006. You can leave this site and
download the US Patent. However, note that you cannot link back to this
site from the Patent Office site. Note the number 7,070,314
and enter the number at
http//patft.uspto.gov/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.htm